A desperate Chinese man from Xinghua put a 20cm-long eel in his anus hoping it would cure his constipation problem, but instead almost died as a result.

The man had heard of a “folk remedy” according to which an eel can help with bowel movement. However, instead of curing the man’s problem, the eel went straight into his colon and bit through it, entering the abdomen.

After enduring heavy pain but being “too shy to see the doctor,” the man decided to go to the hospital where he underwent life-saving surgery.

Interestingly, the eel was still alive by the time it was taken out of his body.

Man in China almost dies after inserting live eel into his rectum to cure constipation https://t.co/lsqk6pGwBV pic.twitter.com/qHQEm8jju2

— TODAY (@TODAYonline) July 28, 2021

And the man is not the only one to succumb to this “folk remedy”.

A 50-year-old man from Guangdong did the same thing with a 40 cm-long eel last year. Also, in 2020, an African carp was found in the stomach of a youngster from Guangdong, who said that the fish “slid into” his anus when he sat on it by accident.